Gujarat starts athlete DNA collection under sports genomics programme

The brief

Context

Gujarat's science and technology department has launched a Sports Genomics Programme (SGP) that collects DNA samples from athletes to study genetic markers linked to performance, recovery and injury risk. It runs alongside a Tribal Genome Project, both implemented by the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC), and comes about four years before the 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad. The move revives an older, disputed idea: in 1987-88 the Sports Authority of India scouted Siddi youth, believed to have an athletic edge due to African ancestry, under its Special Area Games scheme; that programme was suspended in 1993 and faded by 2004. Published research says elite performance cannot be reliably predicted by genetic testing alone.

Key facts

• The Sports Genomics Programme has been allocated Rs 26.05 crore for five years; 2,000 samples are to be collected this year and about 10,000 over five years across nearly two-dozen disciplines.
• First samples were taken from tennis players affiliated with the Gujarat State Tennis Association (GSTA); the next batch covers archery, fencing, judo and shooting athletes from the Vijayi Bharat Foundation.
• The programme will cover athletes below 14, aged 14 to under 18, and above 18, with state and national champions prioritised.
• GBRC will lead genomic work in coordination with the Sports Authority of Gujarat; data will feed the Gujarat Athlete Genome Database (GAGD).
• The Tribal Genome Project, approved in 2025-26, aims to collect 4,158 samples from tribal communities across 17 districts; 919 samples from eight districts collected, 384 cleared genotyping-based QC and 100 fully sequenced.
• A 2023 review in the journal Genes identified 251 DNA markers linked to athlete status, but only 128 showed the same association in at least two studies; authors said elite performance still cannot be predicted well using only genetic testing.
• A 2015 consensus statement in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found no evidence supporting genetic tests to identify sporting talent or prescribe individualised training.
• At the Khelo India Youth Games 2025 Gujarat won 13 medals against Haryana's 117 and Punjab's 47; at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow Gujarat won none of India's 39 medals while Haryana athletes won 11, including seven of India's 13 golds.

Timeline

1. 1984Performance of athletes of African origin at the Los Angeles Olympics influences Indian talent-scouting thinking.
2. 1987-88Sports Authority of India begins scouting Siddi youth under the Special Area Games scheme, citing their African lineage.
3. 1989-1992Siddi athletes from SAI Gandhinagar help Gujarat top national athletics meets; Raika Yunus wins 100m, 200m and 400m medals at the 1992 national games.
4. 1993Siddi-focused programme suspended; Kamala Mingel Siddi wins 100m hurdles bronze at the South Asian Games in Dhaka.
5. 2004Last Siddi athlete leaves the SAI Gandhinagar centre, ending the experiment.
6. 2015British Journal of Sports Medicine consensus statement rejects genetic testing for talent identification.
7. 2023Review in Genes reports 251 athlete-status DNA markers, only 128 replicated in two or more studies.
8. 2025Khelo India Youth Games: Gujarat 13 medals, Haryana 117, Punjab 47.
9. 2025-26Tribal Genome Project approved; 100 whole genomes sequenced so far.
10. 2026Commonwealth Games in Glasgow: Gujarat wins none of India's 39 medals.

Who has a stake

• Gujarat science and technology department (minister Arjun Modhwadia) — Claims India's first state-led genomic initiatives in both tribal health and sports; owns the programme's credibility and funding.
• Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC), director Snehal Bagatharia — Implementing agency for both projects; must identify and validate genetic markers for performance and injury.
• Sports Authority of Gujarat — Coordinates sampling strategy and choice of participating sports; athlete development outcomes ahead of CWG 2030.
• Young athletes, including those below 14 and 14-18 — Their DNA and performance data are collected amid expert warnings against genetic talent identification in children.
• Gujarat's tribal communities across 17 districts — Reference genome database could target malnutrition, anaemia, low BMI and inherited disorders they disproportionately bear.
• Siddi community athletes (e.g., Raika Yunus, Kamala Mingel Siddi) — Past subjects of ancestry-based scouting; their experience of uneven funding and dropout is the cautionary precedent.

Why it matters

A state government is now building population-scale genomic databases for both sport and tribal health, raising questions of consent, data governance and the ethics of profiling minors on scientifically contested grounds. The programme's own scientists concede genomics cannot replace coaching, training and nutrition, while the Siddi experiment shows how ancestry-based talent hunts collapse without sustained support. How Gujarat handles this will shape how genomic data is used in Indian public health and sport before the 2030 Commonwealth Games.